Some studies have shown that people who are homophobic are more likely to have repressed homosexual desires.[58] In 1996, a controlled study of 64 heterosexual men (half said they were homophobic by experience, with self-reported orientation) at the University of Georgia found that men who were found to be homophobic (as measured by the Index of Homophobia)[59] were considerably more likely to experience more erectile responses when exposed to homoerotic images than non-homophobic men.[60] Another study in 2012 arrived at similar results when researchers found that students who came from "the most rigid anti-gay homes" were most likely to reveal repressed homosexual attraction.[61] The researchers noted that this explained why some religious leaders who denounce homosexuality are later revealed to have secret homosexual relations.[61] The researchers noted that "these people are at war with themselves and are turning this internal conflict outward."[61]
